Audubon County Republican. [volume] (Audubon, Audubon Co., Iowa) 1885-1894, 1887-05-05
Writing for the Papers.

A writer in the Chicago Inter. Ocean
says: "There is one thing that has
puzzled me great deal, said a knight
of the quill. 81 can't understand why
so many people regard the newspaper
business as unlike every other when
they come to dispose OF contributions
of any kind. II a man selling apples
or potatoes comes to your door and
you tell him that you don't want any
he accepts the situation without any
show OF resentment, and endeavors
to dispose of his wares elsewhere; but
there are hundreds and thousands OF
young people writing poems, stories
and sketches, who seem to believe
that when they offer any oontribu.
ton to a paper it must as q matter OF
courtesy and business be accepted. Ii
1t is rejected they regard the rejection
as in some way reflection on their
ability and an insult to them person.
ally. Therefore there is more friction
in dealing with newspaper than with
any other business establishment,
and the fault is not with the newspa.
per.
1.-The process is like this: A boy
writes something out OF the usual or
der; it is complimented by his neigh.
bors and the postmaster. or the
ought to be published. II the article
is returned with u considerable letter OF
explanation, in nine cases out OF 10
the boy feels worse than if the editor
had knocked him down, and he never
forgives him.
"Or it might happen that some
bright girl, having her mind flooded
with romance and her nature stimu'
lated by the praise of her associates,
dashes of what she conceives to b. as
good q story as any that Dickens ever
wrote and sends 1t to the editor with
the explanation that it il her first ef.
tort, and that it has been pronounced
very fine by the very best judges, and
that she needs the money very badly
he will confer favor by sending her
what he considers the story worth by
the next mail"
THAT isn't the sort of u case that
troubles me-" said grizzled veteran
Of the press. "There are not many
men who rank with me as q filler OF
waste-baakets, but there comes to me
occasionally a letter written with q
trembling, shaky hand, directing at
tention, in language pathetic and in
coherent, to the fact that the writer
Is propped up in bed, and is writing
with the hope that what she writes
may bring little money to the sup.
port of her sorely striker household;
and that, while the sketch, or what
ever 1t may be, is not as well written
as it would be were the writer we'll,
she hopes that the circumstances
under which she writes will influence
the editor in her behalf.
"Or there may comein the sprawling,
irregular, struggling hand OF an old
man a letter dwelling on the fact that
| the writer has been an invalid from
the date of the Mexican war. and that
he is in possession of fund OF anec.
/ dote and infor nation which he de-
sires to Use to relieve his children or
grandchildren from the burden OF his
support. There may run through the
letter an intimation, rs painful as it
| is pitiful, that country and friends and
family have all been n little migrate
4 full, and that in his extremity the old
/ veteran turns to the paper that has
been friendly to all soldiers, and hopes
that the editor may inhis kindness oil
heart pay him well for such contribu'
tions as he will send. Thereupon he
lays out aprogramme in his old man.
fancy that is to bring him in hand
some income and that will render him
independent ofungrateful children and
no longer burden upon anybody,
Before letter like that-frank, earn
est and pitiful--the best OF us may
hesitate"